Human beings have been cooking over campfires for eons. In the typical campfire situation, a hot dog, marshmallow, or other food item is placed on a stick and held over a fire until it is cooked to a desired temperature and crispness. This method of cooking is generally not very effective. For example, the person holding the stick may have to stand too close to the fire and can possibly get burned. Also, the person cooking the food has to hold the stick in their hand, but they may prefer to be doing other activities at that time. In addition, uneven cooking of the food may occur.
A variety of devices have been created to improve cooking over a campfire. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 2,522,223 to C. N. Hardin et al. (the “Hardin” reference) teaches a barbecue and campfire cooking apparatus support. In the Hardin reference, a slide C is adjustably mounted upon the upper portion of a standard A for supporting a cooking implement D of any desired kind. The slide comprises a relatively short section of a heavy wire formed into a coil 11 the inner diameter of which is sufficient size to loosely but closely engage over and normally slide lengthwise on the standard. One arm 12 of the slide C is formed with a downwardly directed hook or loop 13 and the opposite arm 14 is formed with a upwardly directed hook or loop 15. The arm 14 is preferably longer than the arm 12 to augment tilting tendency of the slide. The loops 13 and 15 are directed transversely and relative alignment to each other on one side of the coil which grips the standard to provide clearance on one side of the standard for the handle rod or shank of a suitable implement D.
In addition, U.S. Pat. No. 5,944,009 to Scheller et al. (hereinafter the “Scheller” reference) teaches a portable outdoor grill. The Scheller device is a portable grill which permits adjustment of a food support platform in three dimensions. A ground support accepts a trussed stanchion and permits rotation of the stanchion. The ground support can be a tubular ground stake or may comprise a support stand. A swing arm is reciprocally mounted to the stanchion and supports one or more couplers having support hooks, a chain and an “S” hook. A harness is suspended from the S hook and secured to a cooking platform.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,537,237 to J. D. Kaestner is for a nozzle holder (hereinafter the “Kaestner” reference). The invention is formed from a single rod and includes a standard 6, the upper end portion which is bent to form two independent nozzle-holding clips 7 and 8, the former of which is located close to the standard 6 and in substantially the same vertical plane therewith. The latter of which is located outward of the clip 7 and extends substantially in a horizontal plane. The clips 7 and 8 are U-shaped and the prongs thereof are in converging relation, and either of said clips is adapted to receive the coupling 12 on the outer end of a garden hose 13.
The present invention differs from the Kaestner, Hardin and Scheller references.